Lifestyles of the Rich & the Famous
by i-live-in-district-12
Summary: A/U - Rachel Berry makes a life altering decision - she leaves her life behind and moves to LA. She lucks into a job as a Personal Assistant for Finn Hudson - star of the hit television show Glee. He is currently dating his leading lady Quinn Fabray, however neither Finn or Rachel can deny the chemistry that flies between them.
1. Prologue

**A/N - **This chapter is more of an intro of sorts - how she came about the situation she is now in. A bit of history to allow the story to proceed.

Please if you like this story or would like to read more - leave a review or i will get the hint :/

Rachel brushed away the crumbs from her skirt, she had eaten her breakfast in the car this morning on her way to work. Of all morning she had to sleep in, today was the only day she couldn't afford that luxury. Today was her first day of her new job, a job she had no idea how she lucked into. She had moved to L.A a month ago, she had one of those life altering moments - on the brink of marrying the wrong man, she had loved him that she knew to be true, but there was that little part of her that knew there was more than the life she was signing up for. She had ended her relationship with Jesse, he hadn't seen it coming and it was the singlemost hardest thing she had ever had to do in her life, saying goodbye to someone she loved, but was no longer in love with.

She had tried to remain in Iowa, but while she lived in a small town her entire life, she was never a small town girl, she had her sights elsewhere. She had contemplated moving to New York, there was always something about that city - the concrete jungle where dreams were made of. She had perused the rentals and that dream died pretty quickly, she wasn't made of money and having to give up her job and use all her savings, she had to be practical about where she could afford to live. She had been talking to her best friend one night, who wasn't to thrilled at the prospect of losing her, but had instead suggested a move to Los Angles. She had instantly turned her nose up at L.A. however after looking into the city a little further, it seemed it was indeed a city that had something to offer her. So she simply packed up her life, bringing with her the neccesities and the rest of her belongings were moved into storage at her parents place.

She had moved into a little one bedroom apartment, it was nothing flashy but it served it's purpose which was somewhere for her to sleep and was secure enough to know that her safety wasn't in jeopardy. Once she had moved in, it was time to dive straight into the search for a job, she had left her well paying job behind in a retail store in Iowa and her saving were good enough for a few months, but she wasn't one to wait and let the situation become dire. She had exhausted most of her options after her first week there, she had visited almost every major retailer, and still hadn't received a call back. She had known the economy wasn't in the best shape, but she hadn't expected it to be as difficult as it was to come upon a job.

She had began taking her neighbours dog for a walk during the day, it was the only way to ensure she didn't go crazy, sitting around her apartment and it served little Maximus the poodle well too. They had bonded over their walks, her favorite part of the day was when she walked past the Universal Studios gate and she said hello to old Pete the security guard. Maximus and Pete had become fond of their little pit stops - Rachel always made sure they got their little hello's in, she was kind of sad to say that Maximus and Pete were her two friends in LA thus far. Pete would always ask if she had found a job yet, she had always joked that she was waiting for his job for when he eventually retired. Yesterday she had made her routine stop and was having a chat to Pete, relaying her fears that if she didn't get a job soon she would have to go back home within a few months, he had been inspecting the owner of the large black jeeps security clearance when a voice from the car who had been overhearing their conversation enquired into who was needing a job. Pete had obviously known the person quite well and informed him or her particular situation as if she weren't even there. She had seen the driver hand over a card to Pete then drove into the lot.

Pete had handed her the card - Finn Hudson and a address written on the card - informing her she had a job waiting there for her if she was interested as a personal assistant.


	2. First Day

**A/N - Thanks so far for all the reviews/follows & favorites. Please don't forget to read and then review.**

So here she sat, in the car outside the house of Finn Hudson, star of the hit television series Glee. She had rented the first season of Glee last night, viewing it for the first time. She hadn't laughed that hard in awhile, she wasn't sure why she had never watched it beforehand, but it was safe to say she would now classify herself as a Gleek. She had never really seen or heard about any of the cast members before, she was more than pleasantly surprised to discover who Finn Hudson was, he certainly caught her eye. This made the task of walking up to the front door even more nerve-wracking then what she would normally consider, she took a deep breath to steady herself as she knocked on the door.

"Hello" the front door opened and she was greeted by a familiar face, however not quite the one she was expecting. Standing shirtless before her was Noah Puckerman, one of the other stars of Glee.

"Hello i'm Rachel Berry, i'm here to start my job with Mr. Hudson"

"Great Finn finally organized a maid, a hot one at that" Rachel modestly covered her chest as he looked her up and down "I knew that if didn't cave he would eventually give in and get someone to clean up this mess. Come in" he held the door open and she walked into house that was obviously inhabited by boys. There were gaming consoles strewn across the lounge room, a large screen TV paused in the middle of some video game and empty beer cans/bottles all over the place.

"Oh no sorry i'm not a maid, i'm here for Finn Hudson, i'm his new personal assistant." she had mustered up all her courage to correct the situation.

"Oh yeah I heard him mention something about that yesterday." he rubbed his mo-hawked head, deep in thought. "I'll go get him for you." She used the free time to take in her new workplace, maybe her first job would be to hire a maid, because this place was disgusting she thought nudging a pizza box that had been there for only God knew how long.

"Hi" she heard a friendly ,voice, then Finn rounded the corner to join her in the lounge room.

"Hi" she greeted back, a little star struck. He was taller than she anticipated, he also was a lot better looking in person. His hair was wet and disheveled as if he had just walked out of the shower, it made her a little weak in the knees. One person was not allowed to be that good looking she thought to herself, it was unfair.

"Oh this is for you" she had almost forgot she had picked up a coffee for him on the way to work this morning. "Coffee with two sugars." she thrust the cup of coffee into his hands.

"Thanks" he smiled at her "How?" he looked at her unsure.

"I googled you. Its amazing what the internet can tell you about one person." his laugher that followed was warm and inviting.

"What none for me?" Noah had appeared back into the lounge room, fully clothed.

"Well I did get a spare coffee incase" she lied, not wanting to let on that it was actually hers. She handed him the cup hoping he wouldn't notice the lipgloss on the cup. He took the cup on offer and picked up a controller throwing himself on the couch and resuming the game in progress.

"So I guess we should get to some official business. Thanks for the coffee by the way, it was nice." he indicated that she should follow him through to the kitchen away from the noise.

"So this is my laptop it has all my current appointments and contact information in there. I am really unorganized when it come to collating that sort of information and getting places on time. If you can organize my filming schedules, appointments, promotional nights etc. I think that's a great place to get started. If you can get me on time to the studio I think Ryan Murphy himself would send you a thank you card." Rachel nodded taking in all the information.

"Okay, that sounds easy enough I can put together a calendar on your computer and then I can sync that to your phone, that way even when you are out you can view your dates/events ensuring you don't double book. I can even set up alarms to let you know when you need to leave for filming." she was talking the process out aloud to herself when she noticed the grimace across his face. "What?" she questioned.

"There might be a bit more too it, I can't guarantee that I haven't already double booked certain days, if not triple booked some appointments that I will need you to sort out." Rachel smiled, that wasn't bad at all, this was a walk in the park by comparison to the level of organization she did her old job.

"That's fine i'll get that all sorted." she picked up the laptop "Is there somewhere where I can work or do you want me to leave?" she was still unsure how this whole personal assistant thing worked.

"I have a study that you can use, it's quiet and clean, unlike the rest of the house. It's the one room that Puck isn't allowed in so you'll be safe in there." once again she followed him through the hallway, the house was deceivingly larger than it looked, she past the outdoor entertainment area, it looked impressive with a pool and jacuzzi and pool table to boot, it was certainly an impressive establishment if you looked past all the rubbish.

She had been in the study for ages, the time had simply flown by her. Finn had offered her lunch at one point but she had waved him off, she was on the phone re-booking his stylist appointment to before his event, not the morning of. He sure hadn't been kidding about his lack of organization it seemed that boy couldn't plan to begin to plan. She looked down at her phone, it was past four in the afternoon and she accomplished her goal for today, his monthly schedule had been up-dated and synced to his mobile. She shut down the laptop leaving it in the office, assuming this would now become her new workspace.

"Hey so i'm gonna head off now is there anything else you need before I leave?" she popped her head into the room, amazed at how long they could play video games for. Finn paused the game, standing from the couch and heading over towards her.

"Thanks for today, you were awesome. Same time tomorrow morning?" he asked more then told her.

"Yeah, same time and i'll be sure to bring enough coffee to go round." she nodded indicating she meant Puck, he hid his laugh behind his hand. Rachel reached inside her purse to get her car keys out, a little flustered with Finn approaching her, she ended up dropping them, he quickly bent over picking them up off the floor. He took a step closer placing the keys in her hand, as his hand brushed hers Rachel felt a shock of electricity race through her hand. She was startled and let out a gasp at the reaction of their touch. She looked up to see if he had felt it too, he was looking down at his hand, the one which caused that shock of electricity to shoot between the two of them.

"I'll see you tomorrow" Rachel quickly turned leaving the house and Finn behind her, not waiting for his goodbye. Rachel didn't linger in her car as it was still in view from the house, she finally reached a red light which gave her pause for a moment - she knew that she was attracted to Finn, the guy was hot. She also knew she needed this job, really needed this job and that her professionalism had to come first.

"Rachel Berry you need to get yourself together." resolved to her course of action she headed home, however she couldn't fully ignore that niggling feeling that things could become complicated very quickly.


	3. Unexpected Advances

"Hi Amanda it's Rachel I'm calling to schedule an appointment for Finn Hudson. He will be appearing on Ellen and requires a appointment for Wednesday week." she patiently tapped her pen on her notepad as Amanda silently perused the bookings over the phone.

"Okay Rachel, Jeff was fully booked, but I've moved another of his bookings to fit Finn in at midday." Rachel smiled "Thanks Amanda, I owe you big time. We are going to have to catch up for lunch one day soon."

She could hear the laugh return down the line "Yeah soon if I ever get a chance to get out for lunch" she had to agree the past three weeks had been quite hectic. It seems Finn's schedule just continued to get busier with each week she was there.

"Well lets just leave it as one day for now". Rachel smiled inputting Finn's latest appointment. She was really getting the hang of this personal assistant, she was even enjoying her new job. She would even say she was relishing the challenges - not ten minutes ago both Finn & Puck told her it would be impossible to get a last minute appointment with Jeff. She stood from her chair heading into the lounge room to gloat over her latest achievement that was if the boys could tear their eyes away long enough from the T.V screen.

"Soooo guess who I just got off the phone with" Rachel flopped down on the single-seater couch. Neither of them paused the game, she could tell they were in the middle of a pretty intense game. She for one didn't understand how competitive they got over a video game but she could often hear curses from in her office when they played. From the sounds earlier on it seems that today Puck was having a better game. A moment later the game had finally been stopped, Rachel was unsure by who though as two sets of eyes now regarded her.

"Who?" Finn asked cautiously, Rachel raised her eyebrows cocking her head casually to one side looking at her nails "Oh only Amanda from Jeff's office. It seems that you sir have an appointment to keep on Wednesday." Finn's face broke out in one of his boyish smiles.

"Seriously?"he asked as Rachel nodded proudly.

"Yup. To think you said it couldn't be done. You should have a little more faith in me buddy." she pointed her finger at him.

"That's awesome. You are amazing." Rachel had to turn her head away, hiding the redness that crept over her face. She still couldn't help blushing every time Finn complimented her. She was nothing but professional around Finn, no matter how attracted she found herself to him, she had a job to do and most importantly keep.

"On that note, I'm going to go grab a drink and get back to work." she pushed herself out of the sunken couch.

"Why don't you join us for a game of celebratory Halo?" she looked back towards Finn, his disarming smile that always made its way into her thoughts on far too many occasions.

"I can't" she smiled "Still too much work to do. My boss is a real slave driver." she resisted every urge she had to jump back down on the couch beside him and grab the controller.

"Aww c'mon it'll be fun" she could feel her self-control wavering when she heard the front door open and a female voice echo through the room.

"Honey I'm home" Rachel saw Quinn enter the room, she must have come straight from the set, her hair and make up looked perfect as always. Rachel swore she looked like she always came straight from the red carpet.

"Oh you're still here" Quinn didn't hide her distaste for Rachel, ever.

"I'm just about to grab a drink would you like one?" no matter how rude she was to her, Rachel was never going to sink to that level.

"No." short and dismissive as always. Rachel sighed and made her way into the kitchen where Puck followed behind her.

"Don't worry about her" Puck grabbed the glasses out of the cupboard as Rachel grabbed the water out from the refrigerator.

"So it's not apart of my imagination?" Finn had never said anything about Quinn's behavior, so a part of her thought maybe she was overreacting.

"Oh no she does not like you at all." Rachel frowned, she didn't know what she had done to Quinn to permit such an attitude.

"Don't worry she doesn't like me either. It would seem she has poor taste in the people she associates with." Rachel had to laugh. She was unsure about Puck after their first meeting, he was very loud, very obnoxious & very forward. She was always a little uneasy when she was alone with him.

"So Rach, let me do you a favor and save you the drama. I am free Friday night for dinner, my favorite restaurant is Breadstix. I even called ahead and reserved a table." Rachel choked on her water, she turned away from him, coughing and trying to hide the shock that crossed her face. This caught her completely off guard, after gaining her composure she turned to face him, surprised to see he was actually serious.

"Uh Noah I don't think that is a good idea." she nervously slid her hair behind her ear.

"Yeah and why is that?" he sure was persistent she had to give him that.

"I don't want to get involved with anyone I work with. It makes things complicated if it doesn't work out." well it wasn't a lie, it was a lot nicer than telling him she didn't find him attractive and in-stead was crushing madly over his best friend, who was also her boss.

"So it's got nothing to do with Finn?"

"Huh?" instantly reeling, he caught her off-guard. She swore she had managed to not give anything away, but maybe she underestimated how closely Puck had watched her.

"I've seen the way you look at him. The way you blush every time he compliments you, the way you look at him with puppy dog eyes." Alright so she severely underestimated how closely he had watched her.

"I don't know what you are talking about. I think your imagination is running a little wild." she refused to have this discussion with him, she hadn't even gushed to Sarah her best friend back home about her crush on Finn.

"Alright, you don't have to admit it to me, but just know - I know." He stood confidently staring at Rachel, waiting for her to falter. She finished her drink not breaking her stride and headed back into her office. Once inside she closed the door behind her, holding her breath to see if he had followed her. Nothing. Oh God she thought to herself, this was not good. If Puck knew about her crush, did Finn? No, he couldn't. She had become pretty adept at reading him and she knew she would be able to tell if he did know. She was able to breath again. However if Puck was able to discover her 'secret crush' then she needed to be a little more careful around Finn. She still couldn't understand why Puck was watching her so closely, she never really thought that he would be interested in her. She often overheard the disgusting stories about the girls he had hooked up with, even seeing some of them do the walk of shame the next morning. She for one was not interested in becoming one of them. Not now, not ever.

**A/N - Just wanted to say a huge thank you for those of you who took the extra time to leave a review. I was supposed to write a chapter on my other fic, but your 'reviews' persuaded me to update this one first! I hope you enjoyed the latest chapter :)**


	4. Friends?

Rachel stifled a yawn as she let herself into the apartment, she was earlier than usual but she just couldn't sleep in. She had fallen asleep halfway through her movie last night and as a result found herself up at the crack of dawn. The house was eerily silent as she maneuvered around, she knew the boys were filming and were on set in the early hours of this morning. It wasn't hard to bury herself in her work, even with Finn's schedule up-to-date, she always looked for ways to keep busy and make life easier for him. She began to take on more tasks - picking up groceries, dropping off or picking up his dry cleaning, she even occasionally would help out with housework. She had just finished cleaning the dishes when the boys came barreling in through the front door.

"That was just luck. There is no way you are going to beat me, it's gonna be my day. I can feel it." Puck was the first to enter the kitchen, Finn trailing him in.

"Yeah yeah, we'll see who will be beating who."

"Hey Rach." they both greeted her in unison.

"Hey guys" she smiled her greeting back "I'll be out of your way in a minute, I'm just finishing up now and then I'll leave." After her confrontation in the kitchen with Puck over a week ago she had done everything she could to keep as much distance from the two of them as possible.

"I don't think so. Today is the day you are finally going to join us for one of our famous gaming battles." She opened her mouth to protest but a look of defiance crossed Finn's face, his brown eyes locking with hers. "I won't take no for an answer." He moved closer to Rachel closing the gap between them.

"Finn I can't." she pleaded not offering him any explanations. The butterflies that now occupied her stomach were now fluttering into overdrive, he was so close she could smell the cologne that he wore, the smell was intoxicating.

"C'mon Rach." he reached out grabbing her hand. Just like their first meeting, as soon as they touched a shock of electricity shot between the two of them.

"Whoa, what was that?" Finn let go of her hand as he moved his hand in-front of his face inspecting it. Rachel took a step backwards away from Finn as Puck was starting intently from across the kitchen at the two of them.

"Nothing, it was nothing." she returned to putting the dishes away.

"That wasn't nothing. It was like a shock that ran straight through me." he looked up at her, his eyes searching hers for an answer.

"It was nothing." she repeated.

"You didn't feel anything?" she paused. She wanted to turn and tell him of course she felt it, she felt that every time he touched her and it sent a thrill through her entire body.

"I didn't feel anything." Instead she lied.

"Oh." his head dropped and Rachel swore his voice sounded disappointed, something she couldn't quite understand why. She placed the last of the dry dishes away, relieved that this meant her day was over and she could make her escape.

"Finished?" Puck asked as Finn exited the kitchen.

"Yeah." she turned ready to grab her handbag and make her escape.

"So if you're all done then you're ready to join us for some PS3?" she sighed, first Finn now Puck, what was with them today.

"I don't think so. I was just going to go home. I'm sure you guys don't want me hanging around ruining your afternoon off together." The corners of Pucks lips curled up in a wicked smile.

"I don't know about you, but it sure sounded like Finn really wanted you to stay...you wouldn't want to disappoint him now would you?" she shook her head in disbelief she should have known he wasn't going make life easy for her. She knew he was trying to bait her and there was no way he thought she was stupid enough to fall for that, or did he?

"Well what about you Noah, do you want me to stay?" she swayed up closer to him, fluttering her eyelashes. She could tell by the expression on his face that he hadn't been expecting that response.

"Wha?" he barely managed to get the words out. Rachel smiled victoriously.

"I said do you want me to stay?" this time she toned down her flirtatious overtones.

"Sure. I mean why not. It'll be just like watching some lame rom-com movie but in real life. Typical chick flick of girl likes boy, boy doesn't know. Blah, Blah, Blah I'm usually asleep by this point because they are all so insanely boring and predictable." he had recovered his wits enough to respond.

"Well maybe it's the movie about this awesome girl and her boss's lame ass mohawked best-friend who likes girl but she doesn't like him." his eyebrows arched at her suggestion. Rachel wasn't sure this was in-fact the case here, but either way he seemed determined to make her life hell about this Finn situation and she needed to distract him and the focus of his attention.

"Nope. Sounds like a pretty shit movie to me." Bingo Rachel thought, mission accomplished.

"How about we call a truce here. I will leave this topic well alone so long as you leave the Finn issue alone. Do we have a deal?" Puck rubbed his chin as he contemplated the offer.

"Deal." he extended his hand out and they shook on their amicable truce.

"Alright now it's time we go and play some PS3 and like Finn said we are not taking no for an answer." Rachel giggled as Puck dragged her by her hand into the lounge-room it appeared there was no way she was getting out of it today no matter how hard she tried.

"Alright, alright I'll play your stupid video games. Do you guys have sing star?" she asked hopeful, she had played that before back home and she didn't like to brag but she was pretty awesome at it. The looks that both Finn and Puck threw her way was a pretty emphatic no.

"Geez I just thought considering your day jobs and all that would have been a given. Obviously not." she plonked down on the couch grabbing the controller from beside her "So do you have Mario Brothers?" she looked up to once again find the boys staring at her with wide-eyed disbelief.

"We have a PS3." Finn simply stated as if that were answer enough.

"So is that a no?" she asked, not really sure what he meant by that answer.

"No. No Mario Brothers." Finn shook his head.

"We do however have Call of Duty." Puck threw the case towards her as he inserted the disc. Rachel picked up the case, right so this was some sort of war game.

"Alright let's get this over with." she was keen to get started, secretly hoping that she wasn't going to embarrass herself too badly before the afternoons end.

* * *

The microwave beep reverberated through her tiny apartment, she threw her sweater over her head and headed into her kitchen where the hot popcorn waited. She had not long ago arrived home, she had spent longer than she had anticipated at the boys house. Much to her own surprise she had actually got the hang of playing COD and certainly gave both Finn and Puck a run for their money. It was pretty safe to say though by the time evening had set it that Finn was far superior and was the ultimate victor in their game. Puck had not taken the defeat well and stormed off throwing his controller on the ground before storming out. Much to her relief Puck had been true to his word and hadn't hazed her about Finn, even when after one of their drink breaks he had sat down beside her joining her on the couch. She grabbed her popcorn, jumping into her bed while turning the DVD on pressing play on her favorite movie Funny Girl. While the opening credits rolled Rachel could help but reflect on her afternoon - she actually had a really good time just hanging out with the guys. She didn't realize how much she missed being and just hanging out with people until now. She still didn't have any friends here in L.A. she spent her time either at Finn's house or her apartment, she was putting all her time and energy into her job. She was now beginning to wonder if she was blurring the lines between employee and friend with Finn & Puck. This afternoon was definitely one of those afternoons spent between friends not co-workers or even boss and employee, the guys were actually really funny and she enjoyed her time with them. However, there was the worry even if she wanted to categorize them as friends, there was the ever present and underlying issue of her attraction to Finn and Puck who always seemed to watching her intently.

Rachel almost choked on her popcorn when she realized where her train of thoughts were directing her. Here sat Rachel Berry in her pink love heart pajamas talking about herself as if she were apart of the lifestyles of the rich and famous and that she belonged in that world. If that wasn't the wake up call that she needed then nothing would be, she pushed the thoughts out of her mind and back to the movie.

**A/N - Thank you to everyone who reviewed my last chapter - I am so very excited for some of you to read some of my future chapters! Once again i am easily bribed with your kind words to update this fic so quickly. Hope you enjoyed :)**


	5. Welcome to the family

Rachel sat nervously inside her car in the Paramount parking lot, she watched the multitude of people entered and exited the soundstage she was to meet Finn in. She received a text message from him last night asking her to meet him on set today, he was going to be there filming all day and wanted her there with him. He had yet to invite her on set and the thought of walking in there was scaring the hell out of her, she felt like a fish out of water in most situations, let alone entering a TV set. She steeled her resolve and grabbed the lanyard with her security tag attached from her handbag, placing it over her head, it sitting comfortably around her neck. There was no time like the present to make her move, she couldn't really sit in her car all day - she had a job to do dammit and she was a professional. She had entered the set without a fuss, she scanned the room and everyone looked well busy being busy, she couldn't find a single face she recognized.

"Excuse me can you.." Rachel didn't bother finishing her sentence as the woman she began to approach continued on her way past her. She looked around again a little more desperately now, biting her lower lip as she continued to scan her surroundings looking for some sign of where she should go.

"HEY YOU!" Rachel froze as a young man with a clipboard and headphones wrapped around his neck approached her at a face past, his face indicating he was less than pleased. "What are you doing here?" he demanded. "I'm here to see Finn Hudson." she answered as he eyed her skeptically. "Did you jump off the tour group? That's not allowed. You can get persecuted you know." Rachel shook her head, eager to sort out the miscommunication. "Sorry I don't think you understood me. I'm here to meet Finn, I'm his personal assistant." She could tell he still didn't believe her, she handed him her security clearance, glad she remembered to bring it with her.

"Go through that door on your left. They are all on break." he didn't offer her anymore than that, but it was more than she had been able to figure out for herself so she headed in the direction the angry little man had indicated.

"Hey do I know you?" Rachel spun on her heels, she was ready this time with her security tag in hand for the next inquisition. "I'm Rachel Berry and I'm here to meet Finn." she said annoyed that she should have to continue validating herself being here.

"Oh cool. Come with me I'm just on my way to the 'chill room' now." she stared at the man before her, he seemed familiar but she didn't get a good enough look at him, she followed him silently down the multitude of corridors, thankful for the guide she would never have found the so said room without him.

"I'm Kurt by the way." he stopped in front of a door, opening it and allowing Rachel to enter. "Thanks for the help Kurt."

That's it she thought, he was one of the actors off the show as she walked in, Kurt following a step behind.

"So Finn finally invited you on set has he?" she hesitated, he seemed awfully chatty and she was unsure of his motives, what if he and Finn didn't get along and he was trying to get information out of her.

"Sorry it's just he hasn't had any of his personal assistants on set before." she scanned the room looking for Finn, looking for some sort of sign of whether he could be trusted or not. "Yeah I'm not really sure." she answered coyly locating Finn in the back of the room, he appeared deep in conversation with Quinn.

"Well either way welcome to the family." Kurt greeted cheerily "Those lazy slobs on the couch are Sam, Blaine, Mike and you know Puck of course." he grabbed her by the hand and led her around to the other side of the room. "This is Tina, Mercedes" they both chorused a hello and a little wave. "And over there on her phone is Santana - the sweetest bitch you will ever meet." she gave a small laugh, as Santana's eyes didn't leave her phone but nodded her head in some sort of acknowledgment.

"So Rachel tell me what it's like having Finn as a boss." Tina grabbed her and dragged her over to the lunch table.

"Hey, hello I'm right here." Finn finally seemed to have finished his discussion and thought it prudent to jump into the conversation right about now. "Hey Rach thanks for coming out today. It's a bit of a madhouse in here at times but I really wanted to catch up on a few things." she smiled as he pulled out a chair and sat down beside her.

Finn wasn't kidding when he likened their set to a madhouse, the guys were in and out all day as they continued to enter and leave the room as they were required for filming. She felt like the shiny new toy, they all wanted a piece of her. She had been trying rather unsuccessfully to organize his details for the upcoming Emmy awards - she had suits to organize, transportation & liaising with a PA from the academy as he was asked to present an award for the night. However her day was spent answering questions about herself - where she came from, how long had she been in the industry, her productivity today was at an all time low. She was almost ashamed to say though that she loved the attention, they had all been so friendly towards her. Kurt had been right when he had called them a family, that is exactly the word that best described them. It appeared that filming was wrapping up as the exhausted group entered the room their last number filmed and finished for the day.

"We hitting Breadstix tonight?" Puck hollered, grabbing his jacket and throwing his tired body down on the couch.

"I'm in if everybody else is." Kurt sat down practically atop Blaine, raising Rachel's interest, maybe they were more than just an on-screen couple.

"Alright let's go - we should still make it there within Happy Hour if we leave now." Santana appeared ready for a drink or two. Rachel began packing up her laptop and throwing her paperwork into her backpack. "Hey Rach, you coming with us?" Mercedes asked. "Uhh I don't know." she answered truthfully, not sure if this was crossing some sort of line.

"She is the hired help Mercedes." Quinn said cooly looking down her nose at Rachel. "She's with Finn which means she is apart of our family now Quinn." Kurt stood from beside Blaine, walking over to Rachel placing his arm around her shoulder, shaking his head indicating his disapproval of Quinn's comment.

"Urgh whatever Kurt. What do you think Finn? Wouldn't it be crossing some sort of boss/employee line?" Finn seemed torn, he was caught between a rock and hard place.

"No, don't worry guys I'll be fine. I'm sure you'll all have more fun without me." Rachel waved the thought away she hated seeing Finn so distressed, she didn't want him having to choose between her or Quinn.

"No." Finn responded. "Rachel, Kurt was right you're family now, you should come tonight." she couldn't help but smile that he wanted her to come along. A quick glance to her right where Quinn stood wiped that smile off her face, Quinn was throwing some serious daggers her way.

"Are you sure?" she asked, hopeful he still wanted her to come. "Definitely." It was decided, she was going to Breadstix, this being her first time out with anyone since her move to L.A and more importantly her first social outing with Finn.

Rachel stood outside the door to Breadstix, she had purposely driven slower than usual as she didnt' want to arrive at the little bistro/bar before the others. She regarded her reflection in the window, flattening out her bangs. She wished she had spent a little more time on her appearance this morning, if she had known she was going out afterwards she would have put a little more thought into her outfit. She grabbed out her lip gloss applying it quickly before entering the warmly lit room.

"Hey Rachel over here!" Kurt stood from the table, waving for her to join them. She quickly walked over to join them, it appeared she had driven a little too slow as it seemed they were onto their second round of drinks already. She settled on the stool that Blaine had fetched for her from the table next door, keen to join in the fun that was being had.

"Who's up for some more drinks?" Quinn asked, hands flew in an upwards direction with a jeer of approval.

"Rachel can you go organise us a round of drinks." the jovial mood at the table died instantly along with the conversation.

"Quinn." Finn whispered angrily, grabbing her by the elbow. "What? She is your assistant isn't she?" Quinn fluttered her eyelashes at him.

"Yes." Finn said between gritted teeth. "Well seeing as though I am your girlfriend, that through default would make her my assistant as well." Finn glared at Quinn.

"She isn't working at the moment." Rachel sat there awkwardly, the rest of the gang were avoiding looking at Quinn and Finn, instead that meant they focused on her, no doubt eager to see her reaction to the scene.

"She is an assistant, their job is 24/7 whatever you want, when you want." Quinn seemed through with Finn as she turned to face Rachel "And I want a round of drinks now." Rachel stood off her stool and headed to the bar utterly embarrassed and humiliated now, she should have known that Quinn wouldn't have let the issue die. She was so angry at herself she knew that she didn't belong in this world, she allowed herself to get caught up with everyone today, she began to feel like she was apart of their family. Quinn however made it perfectly clear that the only way she belonged in this family was as their 'paid' servant. She delivered the tray with the drinks on placing it on the table.

"Anything else I can get anyone?" she asked being met with silence, the drinks she placed on the table remaining untouched.

"Well I'll be on my way then." she turned to exit the bar, there was only so much humiliation she could handle in one night.

"Rachel, wait." Finn jogged after her. "I'm so sorry." he said his eyes lowered to the ground in embarassment. "Don't be. Quinn was right. I"m just the hired help. Goodnight Finn." Rachel left Finn where he stood, watching her leave the bar.

**A/N - **Apologies for such a lengthy delay in this update. I hope you enjoy this latest chapter - things are about to get a lot more interesting in the Finn/Quinn/Rachel triangle ;)

Please read and review - it's appreciated!


	6. First kiss

**A/N - SORRY FOR SUCH A LENGTHY UPDATE - REAL LIFE KINDA GOT IN THE WAY. I'M BACK ON TRACK NOW AND EXCITED TO KEEP THIS STORY GOING. THANKS AGAIN FOR THOSE WHO LEFT REVIEWS - YOUR WORDS AND VIEWS ARE A GREAT FORM OF MOTIVATION TO WRITE. HOPE YOU ALL ENJOY THIS LATEST CHAPTER**

Stepping into Finn's house, suit bags in hand Rachel made her way to his bedroom exhausted from driving around the city all morning. The Emmy awards were only a week away and she had been flat-out running errands around town. She hung the bags up in his closet knowing the suits inside were worth more than she probably earned in a year. She had taken a sneak peek before loading them into her car, she was partial to the silver-grey suit with black lapels, it would make him stand out for all the right reasons. The award ceremony was still over a week away but his schedule at the moment was full on, they hadn't really had much time to discuss what happened last week at Breadstix. Rachel had fumed for a few days after, Finn had tried apologizing but she didn't want to get into a discussion. It was clear that while he was telling her he was sorry the fact that him and Quinn had arrived home together the day after suggested that he was only sorry behind closed doors when Quinn wasn't around.

"Hello?" Finns' voice echoed through the house, surprising Rachel as she wasn't expecting him home for a few more hours. "I'm in here." she yelled back, he quickly entered the room joining her.

"Hey Rach. How did you go with the suits today?" he sat down on the edge of his bed, throwing his gym bag off to the side then began removing his shoes.

"Great." she smiled "All three suit choices picked up. Now all you have to do is decide on which one." Rachel grabbed one of the bags out of the closet dangling it in-front of him. He stood snatching the bag playfully out of her hands.

"Urgh they are all the same to me really. I mean a suit is a suit at the end of the day, does it really matter?" Rachel knew it was a rhetorical question, but she had read enough magazines, and spent many an hours reading through the best dressed lists for years to know a suit could make or break a man.

"A suit is more than a suit, it's a style that help defines the guy who wears it. I mean no girl can resist a guy who oozes sex appeal when wearing a suit. There is just something about a man in a suit that can drive a girl crazy." Rachel knew she had gone off on a bit of a tangent the look on Finns face set in amusement.

"Either way I'm sure Quinn has an opinion on what type of suit she wants you to wear." Finn mumbled something under his breath, Rachel unable to hear him clearly.

"What?" she asked taking the suit bag off Finn and hanging it back in the closet. "Nothing. Nothing important." Rachel could tell that it wasn't nothing his whole demeanor had changed. She now found herself torn - her natural instincts wanted to go over and try to talk to him, however the alarm bells going off in her head indicated it wasn't such a smart idea, she had already been burnt putting herself out there.

"It doesn't sound like nothing to me." she walked over to where he was seated on the bed, however instead of joining him on the bed she slid down and sat on the floor her back against his bed. She wanted to maintain some distance and boundaries.

"It's just your comment about Quinn. It kinda hit a nerve. Your right about Quinn having an opinion, she has an opinion about everything. What I should wear, where I should go, who I should be friends with." his frustration spilling over.

"What your assistants should be doing." Rachel added to the end of his sentence, instantly regretting her outburst. Silence filled the room, it was uncomfortable to say the least. Finn slid down off his bed, joining Rachel on the timber floor boards.

"I know I've apologized for what happened that night. Quinn was out of line. I should have said something, stopped it from getting that far." Rachel sighed, she guessed she now had to discuss what she had been successfully avoiding thus far.

"I don't blame you Finn" and she honestly didn't. "Quinn is her own person and she makes her own decisions." he seemed to take in her statement carefully choosing his next words.

"She really isn't a bad person you know." Rachel nodded not really agreeing, all she had ever got from Quinn was her disdain and being the object of her humiliation and degradation. She carefully considered her next words, she didn't want to lie to Finn or tell him how she really felt about Quinn.

"I'm sure you wouldn't be with someone who wasn't a beautiful person both on the outside and more importantly on the inside." well that was what Rachel wanted to believe, not sure if this was really the case. They both sat there silently for a few minutes, neither of them knowing how to respond.

"Rachel can I ask you a personal question?" she bit her lip, wondering if she had perhaps said too much. She nodded and turned to face him, knowing whatever he was going to ask that she would be open and honest with him.

"Did you really leave your fiancé before coming here to L.A?" the question threw Rachel through a loop she was expecting a million other questions, just not that one.

"It's not like I left him at the altar or anything, but yes. I love Jesse, but I knew I was no longer in love with him. We had grown apart and we both wanted different things out of life. He wanted to get married and settle down which meant start a family. I want those things too, but not yet, not now." aside from her parents and best friend she had never shared this information with anyone else. "Why did you want to know that?" she turned the tables back on him.

"I wanted to know if you did." he paused as if considering how to finish his sentence "How you got the strength to walk away." Rachel wasn't sure what he meant by that statement. Was he implying that he wanted to walk away from Quinn? Her pulse began to race.

"It's the hardest thing I've ever had to do in my life." she didn't lie if he was thinking what she thought he could have been, he needed to know the truth that it wasn't going to be easy. "Hurting someone who loves you so very much and knowing you are the reason they are hurting." the pain from the breakup coming back to haunt her. "You feel like you are the worst person in the world, and start to think that maybe you are." she recalled the look on Jesse's face when she told him that they were over and making sure that he knew that it was really over. She closed her eyes tight trying to stop the memories from opening old wounds.

"I'm so sorry Rachel." Finn grabbed her hand entwining it with his. "I didn't mean to upset you." she shook her head, she knew he didn't mean to upset her, but reliving those memories bought back all the pain and emotions associated with them.

"There isn't a mean bone in your body. You are one of the kindest, honest and most sweetest person i know." she looked up at him from below her lashes.

"I mean it Rachel." he leant forward cupping her chin his hands, directing her face to within inches of his own. "I wouldn't think for a second that Jesse would want you beating yourself up over this." she shook her head dismissing his attempt to make her feel better. "Rachel." Finn whispered lightly, regaining her attention. For the first time Rachel realised how close she was to Finn, she could feel his warm sweet breath on her face. She looked into his eyes as he moved closer towards her, she felt his lips find hers. His kiss was so soft and gentle, his hand resting on her cheek, she moved her body closer to his in response to his kisses not wanting them to end. The sound of the garage door opening snapped them out of their moment, Rachel not really sure of what the hell just happened. She was the one to pull away, standing from the bedroom floor she needed to put some distance between them especially if they were about to receive visitors.

"Rachel I'm so sorry." Finn stood, walking towards where Rachel stood her hand covering her mouth. "No i'm sorry. I shouldn't have let that happen." she couldn't believe she could have been so foolish to allow herself to get caught up in the moment. "I think i better go home." she needed to buy herself some time to think. "No don't." Finn pleaded. "I made a mistake, I'm sorry." There it was again another kick in the guts - she let her guard down and once again she ended up hurt and embarrassed.

"A mistake." she echoed Finn - that is all she was.

"No not a mistake." he hit his head with his forehand "I just mean I'm with Quinn and I shouldn't have kissed you." This just keeps getting better Rachel thought to herself.

"Hey what's going on in here?" Quinn waltzed into the bedroom her stance becoming rigid noticing the tension that hung in the air.

"Nothing's going on. I just dropped off the suits and need to get going." this was not going to get any better by hanging around so she thought now was the perfect time to leave.

"See you tomorrow Finn. Bye Quinn." she quickly walked out of the room, biting her lower lip hard to keep her from bursting into tears. She practically ran out the front door slamming into Puck who had obviously just arrived home. She fell down, landing hard on the concrete landing this being the last straw and the tears came bursting out.

"Rachel?" Puck knelt beside her, placing his arm around her shoulders. "Are you okay? I'm so sorry I didn't see you." she wiped the tears away, hoping the commotion wouldn't attract either Finn or Quinn's attention. "It's okay. I'm okay. I'm just being silly." she threw her belongings back into her handbag standing quickly wiping her cheeks with her sleeve.

"Are you sure you're okay?" he asked sincerely checking her over making sure that she wasn't injured. "I"m fine Noah, just a little startled." she hitched her bag over her shoulder leaning forward giving him a quick peck on the check. "Thanks." On that note she thought it was time to make her escape and wallow in self-pity tonight with a tub of Ben and Jerry's ice-cream.

**REMEMBER REVIEWS ARE LOVE :)**


	7. invitation

Rachel sipped her coffee while seated outside as she scrolled through her Twitter feed on her laptop; the morning air was crisp and she relished the mornings she got to sit outside and start her work days. She had just opened a DM from Kurt, he had discovered she was on Twitter and began following her a few weeks ago. It hadn't taken long before the rest of the cast had caught on and began following her, not that she was on there very often. Rachel double clicked on Kurt's message reading through he was having a birthday party coming up and wanted some suggestions for what theme it should be.

"Mind if I join you?" Rachel looked up and was greeted by Finn who had obviously just rolled out of bed. His track pants had rolled up on one side while the oversized shirt he wore made him look a little ghetto.

"Sure." she kicked the chair out on the opposite side of the table. He seemed to hesitate for a moment then took his seat with coffee in hand.

"Not long to go now to the big Award show." she commented, hoping to keep the conversation on neutral grounds, she didn't want to discuss their kiss yesterday or hear him refer to it as a 'mistake' again.

"Yeah. Nerves are starting to settle in, I've not presented in-front of a large viewing audience before." Rachel was a little surprised that he would be so nervous - he had never given any sign that audiences scared him.

"I just assumed all actors were accustomed to crowds and people. I mean you live your life in the spotlight - every time you step outside you're stalked by the paparazzi. Privacy is virtually non-existent when you're a famous." Finn nodded in agreement.

"I think it's just first time nerves. You should have seem me on my first day on the set of Glee..."

"He threw up at least a dozen times on set" Puck finished Finn's sentence, chuckling at the memory of it while joining them at the table. Rachel grimaced at the thought of anyone being sick - even the thought of it made her a little nauseous.

"Okay no more talk about vomiting at the breakfast table." Rachel closed her laptop, she wouldn't be able to reply to Kurt's message now, especially as she was no longer alone.

"You feeling better today Rach?" Rachel glared over towards Puck, wishing hadn't asked.

"What did I miss?" Finn queried, unsure by what Puck had meant.

"Nothing." she answered Finn, then turned back to Puck "I'm fine, nothing to worry about." she waved her hand dismissing his concern and hoping that would be the end of that conversation.

"Good to hear. You had me worried, that was a hard fall." obviously that was not the case. Rachel found herself wanting to be angry with Puck for bringing this up, but his sincerity and concern made it almost impossible.

"What fall?" Finn asked looking over to Rachel, she dropped her eyes unable to look at him as Puck described her leaving the house yesterday, crashing into him causing her to fall to the ground and then bursting into tears.

"You sure you're okay Rach?" Finn's face laced with concern as he awaited an answer, she knew he meant more than what his question seemed to imply.

"I'm perfectly fine as I said before." this time she didn't lower her eyes, she waited until he was the first to look away; it was a small victory but one she needed.

"Morning" another cheery voice sounded behind Rachel, a moment later Quinn joined them placing a kiss on Finn's forehead dressed in what Rachel could only describe as inappropriate sleep wear. Her pyjama shorts were short enough to be considered underwear and the cami top she wore didn't leave much to one's imagination, she could only surmise this was more for her benefit then the boys; another attempt to make her feel inadequate and uncomfortable.

"So what are we talking about?" Quinn asked taking a sip out of Finn's coffee cup and settling down on his lap.

"Not much really." Puck answered honestly. "Finn was just telling us how excited he is to present an award." Rachel chimed in, hoping that by bringing this up her little 'run in' from yesterday wouldn't come up again.

"It's such an honour being asked to present." Quinn said in all seriousness "You are going to be seem by millions, not to mention the amount of press you will receive. The amount of photo's that will appear in the tabloid magazines. You are going to everywhere!" Rachel rolled her eyes, knowing full well that Quinn was talking about the amount of press she would receive by being on Finn's arm.

"I'm just so happy coming along with you - to support you on such a important night." it took all of Rachel's self control not to make a gagging sound.

"Who are you brining as your plus one?" Quinn turned to ask Puck.

"Your mum?" Finn joked. "No. Actually I haven't asked anyone yet." he retorted.

"OHHHHHHHHHHHH" both Finn and Quinn jeered in unison. "Who is it?" Quinn began her interrogation. "None of your business Quinn." he answered in all seriousness. "Is it Santana? No. she is going solo. How about that ex-girlfriend of yours? What's her name Lauren?" Rachel felt for Puck, there was no way that Quinn was going to let up, but she was at least relieved that her attention wasn't directed her way.

Rachel was typing away at her laptop - finally taking a second between her work to reply to Kurt, giving him a list of popular party themes. She was hoping he would go with her suggestion of a pyjama party. Knowing Kurt though, it wouldn't give him much of an opportunity to show off his flamboyant style. She heard a light tap on the room door and Puck's head peering around the corner before she could open it.

"Hey." she greeted "What's up?"

"I just wanted to catch up for a second." he grabbed the the spare chair and sat opposite her, resting his face in his hands on the table.

"About what?" she was a little curious about his intrusion.

"Well." he paused taking a deep breath steadying himself. "I wanted to ask you if you would be my plus one for the Emmy Awards this week. It would be on a friend basis and my intentions are purely that - Friends." Rachel's eyes were wide with shock, she was never usually speechless but on this occasion she couldn't think of a single word to utter in response.

"I can see I've caught you a little off-guard so I'll keep talking until you can think of something to say." he rocked back on his chair giving Rachel more space "I know you and I had a bit of a rocky start here, I didn't make things easy on you. However I would like to think we have moved past that and I consider you friend now and hope that you would think of me likewise." Rachel considered what he had said and if she was honest with herself she would have to agree that they had built a solid friendship these past few months. He had been really great lately especially when things with Quinn would get a little out of control. He would usually find an excuse for her to make an escape or they would hide themselves in the kitchen making fun of her, all of which helped keep her sane.

"You're right, I do consider you a good friend at that. I would love to join you if you will still have me?" she asked hoping that she hadn't waited to long for him to change his mind.

"Of Course!" Rachel let out a small squeal of happiness. Never in her life could she have imagined that she of all people would be going to an Award ceremony. Rachel Berry the small girl from Iowa making an appearance at such a prestigious award ceremony. Puck seemed relieved with how this had all unfolded, she surmised he must have expected this conversation to have gone in a complete different direction. Speaking of conversations that was going to be an interesting one when she would have to let Finn know that she would be attending the ceremony with Puck.

To say the week had been busy would have been an understatement, Rachel had worked extraordinarily long hours in the lead up to the Emmy Awards. She had barely been home the last few days, a few times she literally crashed on the couch in the lounge room falling asleep with the laptop on. She was thankful that the Emmy awards were on tomorrow night and that life should return to normal once they were over. Today was hectic to say the least with the last-minute preparations for Finn let alone the errands Quinn was asking her to do for her as well. She had just finished on the phone with some assistant at the academy calling for the millionth time today as a knock on the front door drew her attention.

"Rachel can you get the door." Quinn yelled from somewhere in the house. Rachel threw he mobile down on the table, her frustration spilling over. She stalked past the lounge room where Quinn was getting her manicure and pedicure. Of course the princess couldn't get off her ass or get one of her many attendants to answer the door for her, Rachel thought as she opened the door a foul look on her face.

"Pizza." a young man smiled holding out the pizza she had ordered half an hour ago.

"One minute." she dug some money out of her back jean pocket handing it over, waving off his attempt to give her change.

"Dinner time." she yelled loud enough for all in attendance to hear as she dumped the boxes on the dinner table. She grabbed a slice of pepperoni pizza before the masses descended and left nothing, happy her working day was almost over.

"Awesome." the boys responded in unison, they hadn't wasted anytime in appearing as was the usual when it came to food, the food almost disappearing before it was even there only a few scraps remained.

"I'm gonna head off now." Rachel was tired and just wanted to sleep, she didn't want to wake up with bags under her eyes tomorrow - make up could only conceal so much.

"Oh before you go Rach, Jeff needed a hand with packing up tomorrow after I'm dressed and I said that you would be right to give him a hand if that's okay?" Rachel paused, this was it - the moment when she needed to tell him about her plans for tomorrow night. She looked up at Puck, he nodded that it was the right time.

"Actually Finn I can't I'm busy. Sorry." he looked puzzled. "I'm going to be busy all day tomorrow so I won't actually be here." his look had morphed into one of fear as Rachel continued "But don't worry I have everything sorted. You won't have to worry about a thing." she smiled over to him hoping he would calm down.

"Why won't you be here?" he ran his hands through his hair as he usually did when he was nervous.

"I'm going to be getting ready for tomorrow night. Hair, make up I haven't had time to get anything ready this week." Rachel began "What? Where are you going?" Quinn had joined them not only in the room but also the conversation.

"I'm going to be going to the Emmy's as well." she said matter of factly, she was determined not to feel bad about this.

"With who?" Quinn demanded, it was quite obvious she wasn't happy hearing about this.

"Me." Puck chimed in, not wanting Rachel to feel all the heat herself.

"What are you two dating now?" Finn spat out angrily. "No." Rachel was reeling, she hadn't expected a positive response, but this was something else.

"Don't lie to me." Finn directed his question to Puck. "We're friends. Only friends." he assured an angry Finn, he looked over to Rachel who nodded in agreement slightly bewildered.

"Okay. I'm sorry." he seemed to have calmed down. Rachel however had seen enough "I'm going to head home now. I'll see you tomorrow at three Noah. Quinn, Finn i'll see you tomorrow night." she grabbed her belongings and didn't turn around. She had never seen Finn lose his control before, he was acting so weird. If she didn't know any better she would have thought for a second he was jealous, but as he so eloquently put it yesterday kissing her was a mistake. His words not hers, there was no point building up her hopes to only have them come tumbling back down again.

**A/N - Thank you for everyone who left a review - your kind words help keep the motivation to continue writing going. Thanks and hello to my new followers your support is greatly appreciated. I hope you enjoyed the latest chapter - all I can say is the real fun is about to begin now for all involved!**


	8. Red Carpet

**A/N - This update was written prior to Cory's death. I was in-fact editing this chapter when I heard the news. I immediately closed the document thinking to myself that this was the end of the story as I wouldn't be able to continue. Since Ryan Murphy's interview where he spoke about how they would handle the situation I felt robbed. Robbed of our beloved Finchel. I realised that doesn't have to be the end and that what we do here - what we write is where Finchel will live on the way we envision it. I will continue to write so long as you all want it - I fully understand that it will be too much for some and completely understand if it is too painful for you to read. I want to say a HUGE thank you to everyone who has followed, favorited and reviewed this fic thus far - your words and support mean more to me then you will ever know. **

**I was initially so excited to share this update with you all, I'm glad that I've found the strength to do so now - so I want to dedicate this chapter to you - my readers. **

"Ouch" Rachel winced when she was stabbed by a rogue bobby pin. Amanda her hairdresser from down the road was too focused on the job at hand to take note of any of the pain she had inflicted on Rachel. A few final touches, a tuck here and there, she cast a critical eye over her Rachel's hair and few more cans of hair spray and she was happy with the final result. Rachel eagerly headed to the bathroom to inspect her hair, it was perfect - exactly what she envisioned. It was a loose tumble of wavy hair with braids woven in on the side which collected into a low messy bun, her fringe swept to one side.

"Oh Amanda, it's amazing. I don't know how I could ever thank you for this." she yelled from the bathroom barely able to tear her eyes away from her reflection. She headed back into her lounge room where Amanda had begun packing up her tools.

"Just get that beautiful head of yours photographed and that will be plenty of a thank you."

Rachel smiled blown away by Amanda's generosity, she had dropped by her saloon yesterday on her way home from work to enquire if she would be able to recommend someone to style her hair for today. Amanda had insisted that for such an occasion she was the one for the job, she had cancelled and re-booked all her appointments and organized for Sophie her friend who was a make-up artist to accompany her.

"You have to thank Sophie for me as well. You've both done an amazing job." Rachel could still hardly believe her transformation, it was amazing how different she could look with a little 'help'.

"We'll both be watching the red carpet show keeping our eyes peeled for you." Amanda grabbed her bags hoisting them over her shoulder, carefully enveloping Rachel in a hug.

"I don't think you'll see me, I'm a nobody as far many there are concerned." Amanda shook her head "Honey when you look as good as you do right now, they are going to want to know who you are." Rachel laughed, more out of nerves than anything else.

"I can't wait to see what dress you'll be wearing." Amanda said waving farewell as she exited. While her small apartment was a hive of activity early this morning, she now found herself alone, the only thing left to do was get dressed. She looked up at the clock, she still had half an hour before Puck would be arriving to pick her up she figured there was no time like the present to start to get dressed, she was not one to be fashionably late for any occasion. Speaking of fashion Rachel was incredibly nervous about her dress; she had maxed out her emergency credit card purchasing the dress and shoes. She had never spent so much money on a dress before in her life and it wasn't as though she was wearing something off the Paris runway either. She had to go a little further off-shore for her dress - it was an Australian Designer Alex Perry she had fallen in love with it the instant she saw it. She carefully removed it from it's hanger and even more cautiously slipped into it, glad it fit as perfectly as it had the first time she tried it on. The dress was fire engine red, the top bodice was beaded with red metallic beads with a flicker of gold that shimmered in the light. It was a tight fit down to her hips where the silk material flared out and draped to the ground. She grabbed her shoe box meticulously removing her brand new champagne glitter Jimmy Choo's sliding them on her feet. She twirled in-front of her bedroom mirror pleased with how her last minute ensemble had come together. She regarded her reflection again noting that all that was missing were some accessories. She reached into her ornate wooden jewelry box pulling out a pair of earrings that had been passed down from her Grandma. They certainly were no Tiffany or Cartier but they small and delicate enough to compliment her dress without being ostentatious. A knock on her front door and a glance up at the wall clock indicated it was Puck at the door and time to leave. She grabbed her clutch throwing her phone in there, pausing in-front of the closed-door taking a deep breath to help calm her nerves.

"Hey Noah." Rachel smiled greeting Puck; he was dressed smartly in a suit, surprised he had shaved off his mo-hawk for the occasion.

"Wow." Puck said simply, Rachel blushing in response to his reaction. "You look stunning." he offered his hand out to help step down the stairs.

"Thanks Noah, that's very kind of you. You're looking pretty fine yourself." she returned the compliment with all sincerity.

"Now I hope you don't mind there has been a slight change of plan." Puck began as they headed towards the awaiting limousine. "Finn insisted that we all go together. There was no talking him out of it, even Quinn couldn't change his mind." Rachel pursed her lips together, wondering what his motivation for this sudden change of plan could have been. Puck reached out opening the door for Rachel to enter.

"Quinn is going to be pissed when she see's how stunning you look." he whispered into her ear as she took her seat, this time she was unable to stop the smile spreading across her face. She shifted her dress beneath her not wanting it to crease on the journey over to the Nokia theatre. Rachel looked up to find both Quinn and Finn seated across from her, Quinn looked beautiful she hadn't really expected otherwise. She unlike Rachel had opted for a more neutral color in her dress choice it was a simple yet striking royal blue dress with a chiffon skirt. Finn had decided to go with the grey suit and black lapels much to Rachel's delight, he looked so stylish and incredibly sexy.

"Rachel." Quinn greeted her tersely. "Quinn." she returned the pleasantries. The journey towards the Nokia theatre had been mildly uncomfortable, Finn and Puck really the only two keeping the conversation flowing. Quinn had no interest in joining their conversations and refusing to even hold a civil conversation with Rachel, none of that really bothering her. However, now and then there would be a lull in conversation and Rachel would catch Finn's eye, she would catch him staring at her and he would hold her stare until either Quinn or Puck drew his attention away. The car came to a stop for the final time which meant that they had finally arrived, the mood in the car instantly lightened.

"Well here we are." Finn announced shifting to the edge of his seat rubbing his hands together, Quinn flipped open her compact touching up her make up.

"Good luck bro." Puck leant forward patting him on the shoulder, giving him the reassurance he needed.

"I guess we'll head out first and work the crowd as your opening act." Rachel said offering her hand to Puck as he opened the door, her heels finding solid ground.

"See you inside." Finn said as she turned to see him one last time before the bright lights and flashes of the cameras temporarily blinded her.

"You ready?" Puck asked grabbing her hand.

"Let's go." she gave his hand a gentle squeeze. The sight before her was slightly overwhelming, the red carpet looked as if it were over a mile long and it reminded her of a gauntlet that needed to be run. This was no time to be Rachel Berry the small town girl from Iowa she chided herself, she was no longer that girl, this is where she belonged now and she needed to start acting like she did belong here. Now more aware of her surroundings she could hear voices yelling out Pucks name, she turned towards them finding a small group of girls waving madly; iPhones out taking photo's, she gave them a small wave. She nudged Puck redirecting his attention to the girls who once they realized Puck had seen them amazingly went up an octave in screams.

"So what do we do now?" Rachel asked leaning over whispering in Puck's ear.

"We walk the carpet, smile for all the people and we might get asked to do an interview if they think we're interesting enough." Rachel nodded "Do you think we'll get asked for an interview?" she asked realising she wasn't ready for if they were.

"I haven't been pulled aside for one yet. They usually just interview the nominee's or presenters of awards. I think we'll be safe." Rachel was slightly relieved. They had barely begun their walk down the carpet when they were flagged down by a man wearing an earpiece and clipboard in hand pointing towards where Ryan Seacrest from Eonline had just finished interviewing someone Rachel recognized from the series Mad Men.

"Noah Puckerman, welcome." Ryan greeted him warmly extending his hand out in a handshake as if they were friends from back in the day.

"It's great to see you here, unfortunately Glee isn't nominated this year but your cast mate Finn Hudson will be presenting." Puck nodded "Yeah it was disappointing not to get a nomination this year, but we will be back bigger and better this season. The category certainly is strong with lots of great shows on air at the moment." this time it was Ryan who nodded along with Puck "Finn is certainly excited to be presenting for Lead Actor in a drama series." Rachel mused that he neglected to mention the nerves he had also been suffering as she remained just off camera.

"Now Puck, who is this with you and where on earth have you been hiding her?" Rachel was caught off guard as Ryan and the camera man approached her.

"This is one of my dear friends - Rachel Berry." despite the sick feeling in the pit of her stomach Rachel forced a smile on her face as it would now be being broadcast not only across America, but goodness knew how many other countries.

"Well Rachel Berry you look sensational in that striking red dress. Who are you wearing today?" she smiled sweetly moving forward to speak into the microphone that Ryan offered. "Thank you Ryan. It's from an Australian designer Alex Perry." she could see from the look on his face, he had never heard of him before.

"Well I'm not sure who he is but that dress is amazing." Rachel blushed at the compliment.

"You need to give us a twirl for the camera's so everyone at home can see the dress." Rachel willingly obliged and managed to not trip on her heels while doing a slow turn for the cameras. They had finished up their interview with Ryan and he had given Rachel a quick kiss on the cheek followed by a thank you, before his next VIP guest was ready to be interviewed. They had taken a few more steps when they were ushered in-front of a promotional board where all the paparazzi were madly taking photo's of A-List celebrities. There were so many photographers talking at once, yelling commands at the stars 'Turn this way." "Give us a smile." that they all spoke over each other just creating unintelligible sounds. Not knowing what anyone was after she gripped Puck's arm, moving closer to him posing for the paparazzi. She began to focus on what the photographers were asking, she tilted her body closer towards him offering the photographers a sly smile. They seemed to love what she was doing and begun to yell for Puck to move away so they could get some of just her. Puck seemed to hesitate before she nodded that she was alright and he moved off to the side while she worked the paparazzi giving them plenty of shots they seemed pleased with. She was about to leave certain they had to have taken at least one decent shot when she looked over and saw Finn was watching her intensely. Quinn was busy talking to someone Rachel didn't recognize while Finn was just standing there watching her, watching her with this strange look in his eyes. Out of nowhere he left Quinn behind unbeknownst to her and walked right up to where Rachel stood, placing his hand around her waist moving her body up-tight against his and almost immediately the flash of the camera's had begun all over again. She had no idea what he was doing but she smiled none the less, secretly hoping that she would be able to get a copy of these photos.

"You look beyond beautiful tonight." he leant backwards and whispered into her ear. She rested her head on his shoulder in response to his compliment, unable to hide the smile on her face. She looked up noticing that Quinn was now making her way towards them, she turned blocking the view of the paparazzi mouthing thank you to Finn as she then left and headed back to where Puck awaited her. She slid her hand through Puck's as they then began their walk together down the rest of the red carpet.

**Thanks again for reading. You can also find me on tumblr - **


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